A two-parameter distributed sensing system for temperature and strain monitoring based on highly nonlinear fiber

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to theoretically analyze and experimentally demonstrate the investigation of and present a kind of sensing system for monitoring simultaneous temperature and strain measurements based on highly nonlinear fiber (HNLF) and single mode fiber (SMF). Design/methodology/approach First, the stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) characteristics of the HNLF have been studied, including the Brillouin gain bandwidth, Brillouin gain center frequency and SBS threshold. Second, based on the Brillouin gain center frequency, the Brillouin frequency shift coefficients of strain and temperature in HNLF have been studied. Third, the sensing and signal interrogation scheme for simultaneous monitoring of temperature and strain with high resolution has been presented. Findings It is found that the HNLF has a wider Brillouin gain bandwidth. The SBS threshold of HNLF is 78 mW, which is much larger than 7.9 mW of SMF. Also, the Brillouin frequency shift coefficients of strain and temperature in HNLF are 0.0308 and 0.413 MHz/°C, respectively. Originality/value The larger threshold of SBS is useful to avoid SBS under certain situations that Spontaneous Brillouin Scattering is necessary and should be applied. The technique is based on the fact that the Brillouin frequency shift coefficients of strain and temperature in HNLF are different from those in SMF. Therefore, the two-parameter monitoring can be achieved by producing SBS and obtaining the back-scattering Brillouin signal light simultaneously in HNLF and SMF.